One Word

When I look out into the wide-open year before me and ask, what do I hope to accomplish?, there is no shortage of answers. I have ideas. Lots of them! But, I also have an uncanny ability to convince myself that my ideas aren’t all that great before I’ve ever truly given them a shot.

That is why I’ve chosen the word DARE for 2014.

dareverb \ˈder\

: to have enough courage or confidence to do something : to not be too afraid to do something

: to do (something that is difficult or that people are usually afraid to do)

: to tell (someone) to do something especially as a way of showing courage

I’m hungry to bring something into existence that is both deeply personal and bigger than myself, to expand as an artist and to take more creative risks. Often I don’t know where to start so I don’t. But what if I dared to begin? What if I were willing to move forward even when the path was unclear?

This beautiful sculpture, Musica, resides in the heart of Nashville’s music rowand while the theme is music, the sculpture represents artistic creativity itself.

So this year I’m going to practice being daring.

It’s the end of January and I’m mostly aware of where I am NOT that. You know, the places where I drag my feet instead of bravely jumping in, the times I hesitate to speak or completely bite my tongue and feel myself wither a bit inside? But, noticing these things is half the battle, isn’t it? When I am aware, I have the chance to choose and that’s when the magic happens.

What about you … What do you want for 2014 and what one little wordsupports you to move in that direction?

“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.”

– Henry David Thoreau

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* The work I’ll be doing to make my One Little Word visible this year is inspired and guided by blogger, Ali Edwards. You can find more info by visiting her website here.

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Ashlie was born in Big Spring, Texas and has claimed Dallas as her home for the last 10 years. A life long love of travel, a healthy dose of curiosity and a desire to discover other worlds has set her off on the adventure of a lifetime. She takes with her a passion for photography and a commitment to make a difference wherever she goes.

Thanks for sharing your dreams as well as your fears. I'd have to think long and hard about one little word to describe my dreams for 2014, but maybe something along the lines of "adapt." This next year is going to have some pretty big life changes, so I'm going to need to be willing to adapt to a whole new lifestyle... not always easy. Thanks for the challenge and best wishes with taking some daring risks this year!
Vanessa recently posted...How to Communicate When You Don't Know the Language (Well)

Dare is a wonderful word. My word is balance but I think I need a little dare in there as well... I need some guts to just go for things no matter what.
Kim recently posted...How to decide to say yes or no

You are much more daring than you know! I am totally confident that by the time you reach 2015 and need a new word, you will look back and appreciate how daring you already were and how you flourished with ease while excersizing your darefulness! Go get um Smash!

Hi Ash, I have always loved talking to you, starting back when you were my coach or communications person for a seminar, don't even remember which one now. So I love writing to you. What you have written is so great. I have taken on becoming debt free and creating residual income for myself doing something that is totally new for me. Something that requires a whole new being from practicing law, which has not been working for me the last few years. This is instead of filing bankruptcy and all that goes with that. I also announced to my Wisdom Course (which I reviewed this year) that I was going to source 20 people to become millionaires, and then to be a resource for each other, to fund projects that make a difference in the world, outside of politics (which looks pretty dysfunctional to me), Instead of "Shark Tank" I chose the name "Heart Tank". Then I promptly went back to being bogged down in all those little niggly details of life. Including my husband having an aneurysm and blood pressure spikes and multiple trips to the ER. In fact, I have not even mentioned the Heart Tank project to anybody since sometime in, maybe, JUNE! So I see that right now I am in a conversation called - "getting by and maintaining" combined with some beginning level of the new conversation called- Abundance. Ok, so that is my one word. ABUNDANCE. Since I have never really experienced that, it requires a paradigm shift! YAY! Thank you, Ash!

Abundance can be expressed in so many ways - an abundance of ways ;) - great word. Sorry to hear your husband has had some health problems, hope all is well for him now. And Heart Tank sounds like a fabulous idea. I'd love to see that unfold.

Lovely post and "micro-maifesto"... :) There's a saying that I really like: "Dare to be happy!". Few people seem to be "brave" or "bold" enough to do so. Some people even may not have figured out "their path" yet, but whoever did so certainly should keep walking... :)
Best wishes, Oliver
Oliver recently posted...Dreams ~ Henry David Thoreau

Just read this and so glad I did! Why is it so difficult to take the first step, to dare to fail???? That seems to be my issue at the moment, allowing fear to prevent me from daring. I'm going to dare to try after reading this, because I'd rather fail than stay stuck xxx
Sarah Somewhere recently posted...Transcend

Are you familiar with this Theodore Roosevelt quote? It's one of my absolute favorites and the very last line hits me in the gut and moves me to action!
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”